Little Boy Lost
Chapter Twenty One
By GCS
Johnny sat his things down on the balcony that stretched across the length of the building in front of the second-floor apartments. He fished in his pocket for the key his new landlady had given him earlier that day. He smiled as the light from the streetlamp glinted on the shiny new key. He liked the way it felt in the palm of his hand. It was his first apartment, the key to his future. He slipped the key into the lock with ease, turning it slowly until he heard the click. Then he rubbed his hands on his pants. Nerves and excitement were making his palms sweat. Reaching out slowly, He gripped the door knob in his hand and gradually turned until the door opened. The room was dark, but light shown through the sheer curtains on the large window to his left, casting a glow into the empty space. Not wanting to call attention to himself in case anyone was watching, he just looked in the door without turning on the interior light. Across the room he could see the kitchenette area and the darker hallway to the bedroom. He stood there outside on the balcony for a few minutes just taking in the feeling of his first time opening the door to his new home. It felt really good.
Looking over his shoulder to see if anyone was watching, he giggled at himself. He knew he was being silly. It was just an apartment. Lots of people lived in apartments. He shook his head at his silliness and bent to grab his things, moving them inside the door. Then he stood tall, took a deep breath and stepped into the room. No matter how inane someone else might think he was being, Johnny just couldn't help himself. A crooked grin spread across his face, he threw his head back and spoke loudly to the empty room, "hello, I'm home!" Then he stepped further inside, turned, peeked out the door to be sure no one had come out of their apartments at the noise, and softly closed the door.
It wasn't until the door was completely shut and the deadbolt and chain slid into place that Johnny reached over and flipped on the switch that turned on the lights. He looked over at the sheer curtains and decided the first thing he would do is put up something that would keep others from seeing inside. There was an extra curtain rod that must have once had a curtain on it. He knew his aunt had used two curtains like that. One that was kind of see through for when you wanted sunlight, but privacy and the other for blocking out the sun or nosy neighbors. He could use his blanket, but he needed that to keep warm until he could get a proper bed. He reached up to the wall switch and turned it back off.
Then he picked up his bed roll and made his way down the short hall to the bedroom. It was dark. The curtain in that room was heavy and blocked any light from outside from coming in. He felt around on the wall for the light switch he knew would be there. Light filled the room from the fixture in the center of the ceiling and the fan attached began to slowly turn. It made a soft whirring noise. Two chains hung from the center that he knew would operate the fan or turn out the light if he wanted the fan to keep spinning. He dropped his bedroll in the center of the room and tugged at the chains, experimenting with them to see what setting he wanted. Then he just stood under the fan and let it blow down on his face making his hair move from the wind. Giggling again he reached up and pulled the cord to turn it to a slower setting. The last thing he needed was to get sick from too much air blowing down on him while he slept.
He unrolled his sleeping bag and spread it in the center of the floor under the fan. Then he spread the blanket on top and placed the pillow at the end that was open for him to slip inside if it got too cold. Stepping back and admiring his handiwork, Johnny then turned and went back into the main room to get his clothes. He would put them on the shelf in the closet if there were no hangers. Luckily when he opened the closet door there were several wire hangers like the cleaners used. He hung his best shirt and slacks on them and folded the other few things stacking them on the shelf. He put his good shoes and the camping lantern on the floor and kicked off his sneakers, arranging them beside the others. Next, he put his towel and wash rag in the small bathroom in the hall and slid his toothbrush into the ceramic holder that hung from the wall. He carefully removed the paper towels from the bar of soap he had been using to clean up and placed it on the soap dish in the shower. He would have to get a shower curtain, but until then he could take a bath. He then placed his shaving things, toothpaste, and comb in the drawer beneath the sink, stepped back and smiled at his reflection in the medicine cabinet over the sink. Reaching up he pulled open the front and placed his bottle of aspirin on the glass shelf inside and snapped the door back shut.
The last things to put away were the few things he had to cook with. He'd used them over camp fires, but they were all he had, so he stored them in the kitchen cabinet, rinsed the one cup he had and filled it with water. Moving in had made him thirsty. He drank a full cup, filled it again and moved to put it in the refrigerator. When he opened the refrigerator door the inside had two shelves and two big drawers at the bottom and several rows of small shelves on the inside of the door. It wasn't a big refrigerator, but it was shiny and clean. Johnny put his cup in the middle of the top shelf and closed the door. Soon the water would be good and cold to drink, but for now he needed to wash up, brush his teeth, and get some sleep. Tomorrow morning, he had to start his new job at the grocery store. He double checked the locks on the door, turned around and looked at the room again. He felt a strong sense of accomplishment. In the past few days, Johnny had made some new friends, found a job, and moved into his new home. It had been a long time since things had been good for the young man, but now he had a renewed hope for the future.